At the left-leaning city of Seattle, driving a Tesla has become an electrifying issue now that Elon Musk is President Trump’s righthand man.

More EVs parked around The Emerald City have fallen prey to vandalism. Tesla and Cybertruck drivers have been given one-finger salutes on the road, according to the Seattle Times.

“It’s surprising how much more often I get flipped off now than two days ago,” said one driver on a Seattle Cybertruck group page on Facebook shortly after the November 5 election.

A recent post on the Seattle subreddit shows a Tesla with the words “f— Tesla” spray-painted red across the rear driver’s side window. Comments on the post said they were taking preemptive measures to prevent their car from being vandalized, placing bumper stickers highlighting how they like their Tesla but hate Mr. Musk’s political views and actions.

Another act of vandalism was caught on camera and posted on Instagram November 10. A man is seen traveling around downtown while using a heavy rubber boot to dent and damage Tesla cars in broad daylight.

Some Tesla owners at Seattle say that Mr. Musk’s increasing support of Trump was the final straw, even before the election, and dumped their cars for new EVs.

“People I knew would comment to me, ‘Why are you supporting him?'” John Wyss, who dumped his leased Model 3 Tesla in favor of an electric Hyundai IONIQ 5, told the Seattle Times, adding that the brand had shifted “to something that was much more divisive and representing a particular viewpoint around right-wing politics.”

Tesla once dominated the EV market in Washington state, making up 72 percent of all-electric cars on the road. Fast forward to 2024, and that number has dropped to less than 50 percent.

A Tesla owner since 2016 and president of Tesla Owners Washington, McNeal Ramsdell, told the Seattle Times that many of the club’s members have said that they “will not buy another Tesla again because of Elon.”

Mr. Ramsdell said backlash within the state began as early as 2020 when Washington state passed legislation that mandated that all passenger vehicles be zero-emission by 2035.

“That’s when I saw a lot more of the hatred start to pick up,” Mr. Ramsdell said.

“I think people started to feel threatened that they’re going to be forced to buy electric vehicles.”